Naropa is remembered less as a prolific scholastic author and more as a master whose realization crystallized into pith instructions and practice manuals. The works associated with his name are therefore primarily tantric and yogic in character, oriented toward direct meditative experience rather than abstract philosophy. Among these, the cycle known as the Six Dharmas of Naropa stands out: a set of completion-stage practices—inner heat, illusory body, dream yoga, clear light, bardo, and consciousness transference—preserved as instructional texts and practice manuals. These are not typically encountered as a single, unified treatise authored in his own hand, but as a constellation of teachings and manuals transmitted through his lineage, especially via Marpa.

In addition to these yogic instructions, Naropa is linked with various pith teachings on Mahāmudrā and on major tantric systems such as Hevajra. These appear in the tradition as short instruction texts, practice manuals, and man ngag (pith instructions) embedded within later compilations, rather than as large, systematic treatises. Traditional accounts also connect him with commentarial or instructional material on the Hevajra Tantra, reflecting his role in transmitting and elucidating this cycle of practice, even though the precise extent of his direct authorship is difficult to determine. In this way, his written legacy mirrors the oral, experiential thrust of his teaching style.

Another facet of Naropa’s literary heritage lies in the spiritual songs and dohās attributed to him. These are shorter vajra songs and verses of realization, preserved within biographies and song-collections, and they convey his insight in a poetic, concentrated form. Compared with figures such as Saraha or Tilopa, the corpus of such songs is relatively modest, yet it still serves as a window into the contemplative atmosphere of his lineage. Taken together—yogic manuals, tantric instructions, Mahāmudrā teachings, and vajra songs—the texts associated with Naropa form a body of work that is brief, practice-oriented, and deeply rooted in oral transmission, rather than an extensive library of formal philosophical compositions.